A newly qualified motorcyclist who killed his girlfriend while undertaking an HGV has narrowly avoided prison.
Gabriel Horsley-Ling tried to squeeze his motorbike between the kerb and the lorry in heavy Darlington traffic.
The 23-year-old’s girlfriend, Carla Scown, was thrown under the wheels of the lorry and crushed to death, Teesside Crown Court heard.
Carla Scown, 19, pictured with her brother Luke. (Image: DURHAM POLICE)
The lorry driver was unaware of the fatal incident until police pulled him over in West Yorkshire.
Nineteen-year-old Miss Scown died in the smash on Yarm Road near the junction with Barrington Way at about 5.30pm on February 28, 2024.
Prosecutor Michael Bunch said the HGV passed the Toby Carvery and Travelodge shortly before Horsley-Ling undertook it.
A driver behind the two vehicles saw the teenager thrown from the bike and crushed by the lorry.
He said: “The emergency services were immediately called to the scene and despite their efforts, her injuries were too extensive and she was pronounced dead at the scene.”
Picture from the scene of the crash on Yarm Road, Darlington. (Image: CONTRIBUTOR)
In a heartbreaking victim statement, Miss Scown’s mother Fiona said her ‘beautiful’ daughter’s death had devastated the family.
“Carla had so many plans for her life,” she said. “She wanted to travel the world, buy her own home and become a mam herself.”
Carla’s father and brother Luke went to the scene, where they were told she had died.
He said: “You may ask why I have no hatred towards Gabriel. My answer is – it wasn’t deliberate, it was a split-second decision led to more bad decisions.
“We make decisions every day, a bad one took a life and destroyed many others.”
Floral tributes (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)
Horsley-Ling, of Thorntree Gardens, Middleton St George, admitted causing death by dangerous driving.
His lawyer, Chris Hegarty, said Horsley-Ling was 20 when the fatal crash happened, just a month after he passed his test.
"It was a brief but fateful decision which was taken hastily and borne out of inexperience," he said.
Mr Hegarty said the defendant had expressed 'deep and genuine' remorse for his 'stupid mistake'.
Judge Amanda Rippon sentenced Horsley-Ling to two years in prison, suspended for three years.
"You were a young inexperienced driver who made a very bad decision to undertake when it was clearly dangerous to do so," she said.
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"The consequences of that decision will have a lifelong impact for everyone involved including you."
Horsley-Ling was ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for five years.
A post-mortem examination found that Miss Scown suffered fatal head, chest and abdominal injuries.